Switched
by Missy the Cat
Summary: When Becky moves to town, she's excited to join the dance team and make new friends. Then meets Rebecca. At first, Rebecca, pale and dressed all in black, looks Becky's opposite. They're identical twins. They are brimming with plans to switch places and pull every twin trick in the book. But Becky soon discovers that she and Rebecca aren't exactly the same. Slight YamiRebecca.
1. Chapter 1

In this story Becky will be wearing red glasses and two pig tails with bangs likes wearing dresses. Rebecca has her hair down with bangs likes wearing pants and is a goth. Becky will wear contacts later on. They are both beautiful.

Here_ we go,_ Becky Hopkins thought as her mother's car pulled away from the curb.

Becky stood on the sidewalk and smoothed the wrinkles of her light pink dress for the millionth time. She usually felt her best pink, but for some reason it wasn't helping at all this morning.

Becky wished she didn't feel so nervous. After all, it wasn't like this was the dance nationals or anything. It was just her first day of the 9th grade at a new high school. In unfamiliar city. Where she didn't know anybody. She was totally freaking out. If it wasn't for her dad's new job, she'd be skipping into regular school with Kotori and Luna and her old dance team, instead of being the friendless new girl who shows up out of nowhere five weeks into the school year.

But, whatever, Becky was determined to make the best of the situation. This would be just like the first time she ate sushi. It would be weird for a second- unfamiliar and slightly funny smelling but then she'd grow to love it. Besides, what was she going to do, cry until adult hood?

Becky stood up straight and clapped her hands twice. Then, her mouth set in a smile, she made her way bravely toward the front entrance.

Her old school had been a modern box, painted a combination of ugly beige and ugly brown, but Domino High School was different. It looked a thousand years old. Anzu dripped from the huge entryway columns, and beyond the enormous oak front doors was a hallway so big you could make a sixteen-person pyramid across it. Becky's old school was plastered with inspirational posters with sayings that made no sense, like LIVE EVERY DAY LIKE IT'S TODAY!

Here, black-and-white school photographs hung on the walls dating back to practically ancient egypt. She passed one picture with a plague that said CONVOCATION 1912. It showed a bunch of serious looking students in black robes.

At least the sound of everyone rushing to their first class was familiar: lockers clanging, sneakers squeaking, people talking. Becky made her way through the bustle. There seemed to be more Goths here than there had been at her old school. They were as black-and-white as the photographs on the walls: black clothes, pale skin, heavy black boots.

Becky caught her own reflection in a display case. Her pretty dress floated, ghostlike, in front of tarnished trophies and a dark banner that said GO, DOMINO HIGH! She tried to keep smiling, but her heart fell. She looked like a lollipop in a graveyard. What if she never managed to fit in here?

"Rise and shine," a voice interrupted her thoughts. Startled, Becky realized she was standing right in the way of a Goth girl. A prickly bun atop the girl's head was held in place by a wooden spike-_Cool,_ Becky thought,_ a chopstick!_- and she wore a black dress with a neat slanted hem that started just above one knee and ended at the opposite ankle.

Becky stepped to the left, trying to get out of the way, but the girl had the same idea. They both stepped in the other direction. Then they both stepped back again. Becky laughed apologetically, but the girl just looked at her in a weird way. It wasn't mean or anything. She just looked curious, sort of like an inquisitive black cat.

"Do I..." the girl began, frowning. "Are you new here?"

"How can you tell?" Becky asked jokingly.

"So you're probably looking for the office, right?" the girl replied, with the faintest of smiles, as another Goth in a black t-shirt that HOP, BUNNY, HOP! in pink letters pulled up, a didital camera hanging around her neck. The first girl nodded to her friend before pointing to Becky in the right direction. "To the end, around the corner, office is on the right."

Becky had been going the wrong way completely. "Thanks," she said sheepishly. "I probably would have been wandering the halls looking for the principal's office until I got sent to the principal's for wandering the halls!"

To her relief, both Goths cracked a smile. Then the one with the stick in her hair looked at Becky like she was trying to remember something. Finally she shrugged. "Well, good luck." And with that, she and her friend walked off down the hallway. The office was exactly where the girl said it would be.

"Have a seat over there," the gray-haired receptionist said. "Principal Morita will be with you in just a minute."

Becky turned around and saw a chair, next to where a girl with long, curly blond hair was sitting, reading a thick, battered paperback. The girl wore dark blue jeans and a light purple T-shirt, and on the floor at her feet was a one sleeved brown bag (like the one she had in duelist kingdom).

_Finally_, Becky thought,_ someone who isn't wearing black!_ She walked over and held out her hand.

"Hi. Becky Hopkins."

The girl lifted her eyes from her book. She looked confused. "No, actually, my name's Mai. Mai Valentine."

Becky laughed. "No. I mean my name's Becky," she explained. "Nice to meet you, Mai."

Mai made an I'm-such-a-dork face and shook Becky's hand. "Sorry. I'm just really into this book."

Becky sat down. "Isn't that the best? When you get so caught up in a book that you're, like in a different world?"

"I know!" said Mai eagerly. She held up the cover of her paper: Random Access by Coal Knightley, The Second in The Cyborg Trilogy. "Ever read it?"

"Nope. Is it any good?" Becky asked.

"Are you kidding?' Mai cried. "This is my third time through!"

"That's exactly how I am with the Count Vira books." Becky sighed. "You know-vampires, bloodsucking, frilly collars. They're sort of my secret vice."

"Don't worry." Mai grinned. "Your secret's safe with me. As long as you don't tell anyone I can speak the Cyborg Beta Language."

Becky laughed. "It's a deal!"

The principal appeared, looking young with brown hair.

"Becky Hopkins?" he said. "Welcome to Domino High."

* * *

Rebecca Hawkins could have bitten her best friend, Akiza Izinski, for abandoning her as they got to social studies. So what if they were almost late? That didn't mean Akiza had to rush to her desk the moment they arrived, leaving Rebecca zombified in the doorway as the second bell rang. Rebecca clutched at the dark emerald ring hanging on the charm around her neck, hoping it would ward off her fear like a magic amulet. As if. It had been 3 weeks since Ms. Chono assigned seats, and Rebecca still felt like she was caught in direct sunlight without any sunblock. Sitting at a desk next to handsome Yami Muto each morning was torture. Quite enjoyable torture, admittedly, but still.

She forced herself to put one foot in front of the other, shooting Akiza her meanest look- the death squint- as she crept past. Akiza rolled her eyes.

Rebecca is straightening out her hair, then peered out at Yami from behind a curtain of blond hair. He was utterly Goth gorgeous in every way: light tan skin(like yugi's), black hair with red/purple rims and blond bangs, handsome face, and built up body. Her heart convulsed. She was sure she'd turn to dust if they ever exchanged a single word. He was writing with his pencil.

_I'm going to fail this class_, thought Rebecca. _How can I concentrate on a single thing when he's so close?_

A singsong voice interrupted her thoughts.

"After I win the dance tryouts and become captain of the dance team, I'm totally going to the best dances ever!" said Bulla Briefs.

_Kill me now, _Rebecca thought. Rebecca could think only one thing more painful than unrequited love, and it was hearing Bulla Briefs babble on about herself.

"I am already so much better than my big sister," Bulla twittered, "and she's, co-captain of the team at West City College."

"Maybe I'll be your co-captain!" one of Bulla's minions said brightly.

"Maybe I won't have a co-captain,"Bulla replied coolly.

It was one thing to get assigned a seat next to Yami Muto and die of embarrassment. But it was another thing altogether to get seated behind Bulla Briefs and die of boredom listening to her endless, dumb, mean-spirited chatter. Bulla and her lemmings had been yammering on about dances tryouts nonstop since the first day of school.

When Rebecca was done with hair she pulled out her note book(her hairstyle is when she was in waking the dragons). She angled herself away from Yami- if she couldn't spend eternity with him, she could at least use the time productively- and turned to the back page, where she jotted her ideas for the school paper.

"Former Domino High Dance Captains: Where Are They Now?" she wrote. _"Let's see,_ she thought. There was Carli Spith, who was now a cashier at KN Store. And Melinda Willsocks, who got crowned Miss Revoline at the auto show last year but still lived with her parents and couldn't get a regular job. And...

Rebecca realized that the room room had suddenly gone quiet. She stopped writing.

"Class," Ms. Chono stood the girl in the pink dress. Rebecca got this weird feeling she seen this person before- deja vu mixed with indigestion.

"Her name is Becky Hopkins," Ms. Chono explained. "She just moved here from the coast."

Rebecca put her hand on her necklace and twirled her ring as she watched the new girl at the front of the room. Becky's long blond hair was pulled into 2 pigtails. Her dress was seriously pink. She wasn't the kind of person who would normally attract Rebecca's attention. So why did Rebecca feel like she was looking at someone she had met before?

Becky was given a desk right near the front, probably because, once again, Ms. Chono was determine to ruin Rebecca's life using the ancient curse of assigned seating; no matter how she craned her neck, Rebecca was unable to catch another qlimpse of the new girl's face.

In between trying to learn about the legislative branch of government and trying to look more cool and beautiful in case Yami was looking at her, Rebecca tried to figure out how she knew Becky Hopkins. She decided to list all the possibilities in her notebook: Kindergarten? Elementary? Middle School? Summer retreat? Burger World? Mall? Finally, desperately Rebecca wrote... TV?

There weren't many people Rebecca knew who Akiza wouldn't recognize as well, so Rebecca tore a blank corner from one page and passed a note back to her friend while Ms. Chono was writing on the blackboard. Akiza's response came to at once: "R u kidding? She's 2 pink 4 us 2 know!" She drawn one of her bunny cartoons at the bottom. "Love your fur!" one bunny said. "Pink is totally my natural color! replied another, which had a ribbon in it's hair.

Rebecca tried to cloak her laughter with a fake cough, but the resulting rattle was seriously grave. Yami probably thought she sounded like a cat coughing up a fur ball.

Rebecca saw Becky raised her hand to ask a question. "Do we have to type an assignment?" Even her voice sounded familiar. Rebecca was more certain than ever that there was_ something _ strange about the girl in the pink dress. When the bell rang, Rebecca waited for Yami to before she got up. She and Akiza were headed for their lockers when Akiza nudged her arm and said, "Looks like the new bunny's about to be roadkill."

Down the hall, Becky Hopkins was standing by the bathrooms, surrounded by four boys in black heavy metal T-shirts.

_Oh no, _thought Rebecca. It was the Hirutani's gang(Joey is not in the gang).

Before she knew what she she was doing, Rebecca was rushing toward the gang.

"New meat," she heard one of the boys said.

"Yead, dude.' Another member chuckled. 'Like with ketchup. I wonder if she likes horror stories." They all guffawed.

For the first time, Rebecca saw Becky without a smile on her face. Their eyes met over the boys' shoulders. Becky looked half confused, half scared.

Rebecca clenched her teeth. As night was her witness, there was _no way_ she was going to let this girl be eaten alive by the biggest Goth losers at Domino. "Buzz off and die, beasts!" she growled, shoving them aside and stepping in front of Becky. "Go haunt a convenience store parking lot."

"What's your problem, Hawkins?"

"You're my problem, you rat. Now put a stake in it." Rebecca unleashed her death squint. "I _said_ buzz off!"

The Hirutani gang laughed uncomfortably before slinking away down the hall.

"I am _so_ happy you showed up," Becky blurted. "I don't even know your name, and you're already my favorite person!"

Rebecca introduced herself. "And don't worry about the Hirutani's gang," she said. " They're harmless. They act all grave, but they're not nearly as scary as they smell."

"You sure seem to know how to handle them," Becky remarked.

"Yeah, well, I'd better," Rebecca said. "I'm going to have put up with them _forever_."

Becky laughed. "Anyway, thank you, Rebecca Hawkins. I'm really grateful."

The strange feeling rushed back over Rebecca with a force so powerful she nearly stumbled. All at once, she realized why the new girl looked so familiar. _She looks a lot like me,_ Rebecca thought. _More than a lot- she looks almost_ exactly_ like_ me! A wave of nausea hit her, and knees trembled. She was either going to throw up or faint in the middle of the hall. Yami would see her splayed out on the linoleum floor, her face whiter than bone, her black-stockinged legs twisted like a doll's.

Becky was still talking, but the roar in Rebecca's head was too loud for her to hear.

"Later," Rebecca croaked. And, quick as bat, she flew into the girls' bathroom.

End of chapter 1.


	2. Chapter 2

_Oh great_, Becky thought, _I overdid it._ Why did she always have to come on so strong when met new people? Here was this girl, Rebecca, clearly trying to be nice, and Becky immediately started talking her ear off. The poor girl had looked like she was about to puke.

Still, Becky couldn't help wondering why Rebecca Hawkins had gone out of her way to help her. After all, Rebecca was ultra Goth. For someone like her to be friendly to someone like Becky twice in one morning was unusual to say the least.

Whatever. Becky had gym next, and she needed to find the locker room and change as fast as she could. The principal had said that Ms. Barnett, her PE teacher, was also the dance teaching coach, and Becky wanted to make a stellar first impression.

"You're not wearing socks, Ms. Hopkins," Ms Barnett said sternly less than seven minutes later. Becky had barely had a chance to introduce herself. "This is a physical education class, young lady. How can you receive a physical education if your feet are not properly attired?

Becky made sure she kept smiling, which wasn't easy considering she was also trying to nod seriously. "I completely agree," she said sincerely. "I've been dancing since I was eight, and I fully understand the dangers of painful blisters and unwanted foot fungus. I promise not to forget my socks again, ma'am.

Ms. Barnett nodded with begruding respect. _There isn't a female gym teacher on earth who doesn't love being called Ma'am,_ thought Becky.

After Ms. Barnett had given her the details of the dance tryouts coming up in three weeks, she led Becky across the gym to where three girls were taking turns doing handsprings. She gestured to one with a blue/green ponytail, who bounced right over.

"Bulla Briefs, this is Becky Hopkins. She also interested in trying out for the team."

"You're the new girl!" Bulla cried. "Welcome to Domino High."

Becky smiled. "Nice to meet you."

"Come on," said Becky. "I'm just about to teach Alexis and Rio this unbelievable awesome cheer!"

For the first time all morning, Becky let herself relax. She'd found the dancers. Unlike the other students in gym class, all the three girls wore matching short pink and tight gray Domino T-shirts. Becky just knew she'd be having sleepovers and talking about boys in the locker room with them before long.

Becky watched Bulla run through the routine. The girl clearly knew her moves. She had good energy, sharp moves, nice tumbling. It was completely possible that Bulla Briefs was going to be new best friend.

"That was great, Bulla!" Becky said.

_Except,_ she thought, _"Domino" doesn't really rhyme with "blue," but, whatever. _"We used to do a dance a lot like that at my old school."

"I wrote it myself." Bulla beamed.

The routine had some complicated parts but nothing too difficult. Becky got it in no time. After a few run-throughs, she even tried some new lines, shouting, "You know you're a dancer now you need to add more moves!" instead of Bulla's words.

"Sorry, Becky," Bulla said, running over from where she was working with Alexis and Rio on new dances. "I think you got the moves wrong. We'd better do it again." Which was fine. After all, it was Bulla's moves.

Becky was just relieved to feel that she fit in. In fact, at the end of class, she was on her way to the locker room when Ms. Barnett actually smiled at her.

"Nice dances, Becky" said the female gym teacher. Becky could have made a new move on the spot!

"Ms. Barnett says that everyone," Bulla said, as she pushed open the door to the locker room.

Becky shrugged. "Hey, this morning I was no one. "Everyone' is a step up!"

* * *

It sure didn't feel that way at lunch, though. Looking out at the cafeteria, Becky felt like no one again. She had no idea where to sit. She wished she was back in her old school, with Luna and Kotori waving at her from their table by the window.

Finally, Becky spotted Mai sitting by herself in the corner, slowly reading her sci-fi epic along eating her lunch. Becky almost took off running, she was so happy to see her.

She was almost at Mai's table when Bulla Briefs appeared wearing a red leather outfit(like Dragon Ball GT). Behind her stood Alexis and Rio, there smiles shining like white billboards above their trays.

"Come sit with us!" Bulla said.

Becky glanced over at Mai, whose still reading her book. For some reason, Becky's stomach sank. "Okay."

"This is the popular table," Alexis told her as they sat down.

"We sit here everyday," said Rio.

"Great." Becky smiled, silently noting that they were the only people at the table.

"Girls," Bulla said. "First things first. I think it's our duty to tell Becky the rules."

"What rules?" Becky asked.

"Duh." Alexis rolled her eyes. "Bulla's rules."

"No, Alexis." Bulla looked annoyed. "The rules of Domino High School." She straightened her back and took a deep breath.

"Rule number one," Bulla announced. She reached over Becky's tray and gingerly picked up a piece of garlic bread with two fingers. She looked completely grossed out, as if she were holding a dead bird. "Never order garlic bread. It totally kills..."

_Vampires? _Becky wondered.

"... your social life," Bulla finished, dropping the bread so that it landed back on Becky's tray with a thud.

"Rule number two," Bulla went on, wiping her hands on her napkins. "Pink is in. Black"- she shot a cold look at another table, where Becky saw Rebecca Hawkins sitting with some friends- "is so last season. But you already knew that, right?" Bulla added and winked.

"So I can't wait to borrow that dress," Rio said, looking Becky up and down approvingly.

"Anyway," said Bulla, "rule number two is: Pink is perfect!"

Becky shifted in her seat uncomfortably.

"But rule number three," Bulla continued, "is the most important rule of all."

Bulla looked at Alexis and Rio, who nodded solemnly. Then Bulla did a double clap, and all three spoke in unison: "The team is everything, and the leader makes the shots!"

It was as if they'd practiced it- which, Becky realized, they probably had. "Cool," she said, not wanting to be mean. "Who's the leader?"

Alexis and Rio looked at Becky like she'd popped a zit right at the tablr.

"It's all right," Bulla said. "She's new. That's a perfectly good question, Becky. I'm the leader."

Becky couldn't help it; she was shocked. She had to eat a forkful of fruit salad just to cover her reaction. Finally she swallowed. "I, um, talked to Ms Barnett in gym, and she said that the leaderships won't be decided until tryouts."

"I know," said Bulla, nodding sympathetically. "She actually _has_ to say that or else she'll be fired. Like, to be fair. But everyone knows it going to be me."

"It's just like everyone on the team has to tryout again every year, so it at least _looks_ like new people have a chance," Alexis said.

"Like you!" Rio chimed. Then she realized what she just said and added quickly, "Although I'm sure you'll make it if you stick with us."

Becky forced herself to smile and nod. _I should have sat with Mai_, she thought. And then, out of the corner of her eye, Becky saw Rebecca and her friends about to pass by, carrying their trays.

Bulla cleared her throat. "It's such a shame," she said ultraloud, "when people can't afford to buy from this century. We should totally set up a charity."

_Oh, my gosh. Bulla did _not_ just say that! _Becky thought. She stared down at her tray as Rebecca brushed past with her friends. Luckily, they didn't say anything.

When the Goths had gone, Becky sat up straight. "Bulla what was all that about?"

"Excuse me?" Bulla said haughtily.

"That girl, Rebecca, saved my butt this morning. And even if she didn't, I don't really think that entitles you to smash her feelings."

"Well, thank you for the feedback, Becky," Bulla huffed. "But it's clear you don't know what you're talking about. Now, I'll forgive you for not knowing this because you're new, but let me tell you something about those Goths. The walking dead don't _have _feelings!"

* * *

_How utterly great_, Rebecca thought grimly as the bell rang for the last class of the day. _The new girl- who looks just like me but is best friends with Bulla Briefs- is in my science class, too._

Rebecca slumped in her chair in the back row. She could not believe Becky had been sucked into Bulla's web so easily. Becky might share Rebecca's nose, but that was obvisiously where the resemblance ended.

_Uh-oh._ Becky was coming over.

"Hi," Becky said quietly. She seemed embarrassed.

_She should be! _thought Rebecca.

Becky said, "Mr. Kingery told me you're my lab partner."

_What?! This is so unbelievably O-negative_, Rebecca raged silently. She was now oficially having the weirdest and worst day ever. She was ready to say something really grave, but the look on Becky's face stopped her.

"I am so horrified by what Bulla said at lunch. I mean, you are, like the nicest person I've met so far. I know I should have said something on the spot. It's just that, I don't know, I was so _shocked._ I mean, look at you. You're got unbelievable style," Becky said.

"P-pardon me? Rebecca stammered.

"That's the coolest outfit I've ever seen all day!" Becky went on. "And I'm absolutely going to sometimes try putting my hair down like you did. You've got _way_ more style than Bulla Briefs."

Rebecca was speechless.

"Anyway," Becky concluded, "I'm really sorry." Maybe Becky Hopkins wasn't a dance underling after all. Rebecca moved her books aside so Becky could sit down.

"It's okay," Rebecca said. "I'm used to Bulla's petty ways. I bet she didn't tell you I'm her next door neighbor."

"Are you serious?" Becky asked incredulously.

"Dead serious. And she never misses an opportunity to say something nasty." Rebecca rolled her eyes. "I guess it's a dancers thing."

Becky shooked her head firmly. "I cheered at my old school, and most dancers aren't like that-any more than Goths girls are all witches."

"As if." Rebecca laughed, impressed.

Becky opened her notebook. "I mean, it would be one thing if you'd _done_ something. But for Bulla to act like that out of nowhere-"

"Actually," Rebecca interrupted, "there _was_ sixth grade."

Becky's eyes widened. "What happened in sixth grade?"

"I tried-"

Mr. Kingery appeared in front of their desk. "Don't you think you should be preparing your materials like the rest of the class?"

"Sorry," they both mumbled. Rebecca sheepishly handed a pair of safety goggles to Becky. A few moments later, when Mr. Kingery had gone, she continued in a whisper, "I tried out for the dance team.

"YOU tried out-" Becky gasped, but Rebecca motioned for Becky to keep her voice down. "For the dance team?" Becky finished in a whisper.

"Yep." Rebecca smiled. "My Grandpa wanted me to have an extracurricular. I actually made the team... But... who didn't?"

"No way." Becky's jaw dropped.

"Way." Rebecca grinned. "Bulla was the only alternate."

"You can dance," Becky asked.

"I may not be a smiler, but I _am _really good at gymnastics," Rebecca replied.

"You can too smile," objected Becky.

"Yes, but I don't _like_ to smile," Rebecca said. "And I certainly don't like to be perky. Truth is, I wasn't really into the 'smiling' part of the team."

Becky wrinkled her nose. "That part _is_ really important," she admitted.

"It just wasn't my style," Rebecca explained. "Even my grandpa knew it. So, after the first week, I quit and joined the newspaper."

"And what happened?" probed Becky.

"Bulla got to fill the spot I left. That was the only reason she made the team. She never got over it. And the rest, as they-"

"Is middle school!" Becky blurted out. They both laughed.

"Ladies!" Mr. Kingery interruppted from across the room. "Please focus on the experiment at hand! We are exploring the combustion of plant matter, not your social lives!"

Becky straightened out her glasses and raised her hand to turn on the Busnsen burner. There was a dark emerald ring on her middle finger. The strange feeling Rebecca had experienced earlier when she'd looked at Becky like a tidal wave. Her hand instantly flew to her neck, and she felt for the ring on it's back chain beneath dark grey tube top. She found it near her throat. But how could there be two of them? The ring was the only thing she had from her real parents. She was sure it was one of a kind. How could Becky have one, too?

"Rebecca?" Becky was staring at her. "Are you okay?"

Somehow Rebecca forced herself to speak. "F-fine," she stammered.

Rebecca didn't know how she would make it to the end of class, but she did. When the bell finally rang, she grabbed Becky's arm. "Come with me!"

"Sure," Becky said. "Where to?"

Rebecca looked around wildly as they stepped into the hallway. "The bathroom."

Rebecca thought she would die if there was anybody else in the girls' bathroom. She checked to make sure it was completely empty.

"Are you going to tell me a secret?" Becky asked as she watched curiously. Rebecca came over and turned Becky to face the mirror.

Rebecca gently reached over to take Becky's glasses. Becky's eyes met Rebecca's blurry reflection, and all at once, Becky's smile disappeared. "Rebecca, what is it?"

Rebecca lifted Becky's wrist. "Where did you get this ring?" Rebecca asked, her voice trembling.

Becky looked stunned for a moment. Then she took a deep breath. "It's the only thing in the world," she said slowly, "that my real parents gave me."

Rebecca reached carefully into her shirt, pulled out her chain, and held up her ring next to Becky's. The rings were identical. They had the same ornate etchings on same oddly cut green emeralds. They even seemed to shine brighter now that they were next to each other. Rebecca and Becky's reconnected in the mirror.

When Rebecca spoke again, her voice was almost a whisper. "When's your birthday?"

Becky's voice shook. "May..." she began.

"Fifteen," Rebecca finished.

Rebecca gave Becky back her glasses. After she put them back on, she put a hand over her mouth. "You look just like me!"

"_You _look just like _me_," Rebecca said, raising her eyebrows.

Becky spun around to face her.

"Who were..." they both started.

"How did..." Neither of them finished.

Rebecca took a deep breath.

"When were..." they said as one.

"Okay," Rebecca cried. "You go first."

"Are you adopted?" Becky blurted. "I am."

"Me, too," Rebecca answered. "How old were you?"

"One," Becky replied. "You?"

"Same."

"Where you were born?" Becky asked.

"Yonezato Hospital, Domino City," Rebecca told her.

"Me, too!" Becky shook her head. "This is so out of control."

"When was the first time you moved?" asked Rebecca.

Becky's eyes lit up. "A few years ago. My parents drove to Tokyo, Japan, there was these unbelievably great place and trees."

"You have no idea how jealous I am." Rebecca sighed. She always wanted to go to Tokyo.

"What about your ring?" Becky asked.

"I got it for my 8th birthday," Rebecca replied. "My grandpa said my real parents wanted it that way. It was a condition of the adoption."

"That's exactly what my parents told me!" Becky bit her lip. "Do you... do you know anything else about them?" She looked at Rebecca hopefully.

Rebecca's heart sank. "No. My Grandpa said they died of freezing to death," she said.

For a moment, they were both quiet. Then Rebecca's mouth curled into a wide grin. "Well, Becky, I've always wanted an evil twin."

Becky rolled her eyes. "That is just what _I _was going to say!"


	3. Chapter 3

For as long as she could remember, Becky had wished for a sister. Now she didn't know which was hardest to believe: the fact that she had a sister, the fact that she had a _twin_ sister, or the fact that her twin sister was her lab partner in science.

Studying Rebecca's face, she felt dumb for not realizing right away. Underneath the dark eyeliner and Goth outfit, Rebecca looked exactly like her. And to think Becky had been scred she wouldn't find anyone like herself at Domino High.

"We need to talk," Rebecca said. She even had the same smile as Becky. "Want to walk to Burger World for a bite?"

"Sure. I'm starved!" Becky beamed. "I just have to call my mom so she doesn't worry."

"Use my cell," Rebecca said, reaching into her bag.

Becky called home and said she'd be late because she was going out to eat with this really cool girl she'd met at school.

"That's great!" her mom replied. "I knew you'd have no trouble making new friends, Becky. Make sure your home by 8, and have fun!" after that she hung up.

"What about calling your parents?" Becky asked Rebecca.

"It's always been just Grandpa and me," Rebecca explained. "And he let's me be pretty independent."

Becky and Rebecca got their bags from their lockers, then headed down the hallway and out through the front doors of the school. As they made their way down the street, Becky looked over at Rebecca walking beside her. The sun made shimmering patterns on her sister's dark outfit.

"Don't you think it's weird," Becky mused, "that my dad just transferred to Domino High?"

"I was thinking about that, too,' Rebecca said. "and I think there's only one explanation." She stopped and turned to Becky. "I think we were meant to find each other."

Becky's heart did a roundoff, and her eyes filled with tears. She gave Rebecca a huge hug. She couldn't help it. Rebecca didn't move. _Oh, no,_ Becky thought. She was coming on too strong again. Or Rebecca didn't want _her_ as a sister.

But then Rebecca hugged her back. They both started sobbing right there in the middle of the sidewalk. If somebody had walked by, that person would have wondered what was wrong. But nothing was wrong. Everything was right. They were just sixteen-year-old twin sisters hugging for the first time. Finally, Becky let go and reached into her bag for some some tissues she wiping her tears.

"You goths really don't like pink, do you?"

Rebecca chuckled as they walked on again. "I hope you like Domino High," she said to Becky. "The bunny population here isn't too bad."

Becky glanced at her. She had a weird look in her eyes. "What's up?" Becky asked.

"Huh?" her sister said distractedly. "Nothing. I was just... I was... thinking again how strange it is..." She was talking really slowly. Then, all at once, she seemed to come back to life. "That we're _sisters._"

"No kidding!" Becky agreed. "Why do you think we weren't adopted as a pair? I mean, don't they usually try to keep twins together?"

Rebecca played with the ring around her neck. "I don't know," she said thoughtfully. "Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"No. Do you?" Becky asked.

"No. Maybe both our parents could only adopt one kid. Maybe our real parents wanted us apart."Rebecca shrugged. "We don't know a thing about them."

Becky nodded and followed Rebecca toward Burger world up ahead.

"All I know is," Becky said, "when I think that we could have been together for the last fifteen years, it makes me want to scream. I totally could've used a twin sister in third grade."

"Yeah," said Rebecca as they crossed the parking lot. "Third grade _did_ bite."

The restaurant was packed with other students from Domino High School. The place was decorated like ancient egypt, with fake duel monster hanging from the ceiling. But instead of slabs of them, they looked like pinatas and pharaoh's coffin. Becky followed Rebecca to an empty booth hidden in an alcove near the back of the restaurant.

A waitress decked out in an apron appeared. "The usual?" she asked Rebecca.

"Definitely," Rebecca replied. "What about you, Becky?"

The waitress looked over expectantly.

"What are you having?" Becky asked Rebecca.

Rebecca put her finger on Becky's open menu. "The Drawbread. It's an almost raw burger. It's utterly drippin," she said happily.

_Gross_, though Becky. She wrinkled her nose and turned back to the waitress. "I'll have the Bunny's Delight please." _What is it about bunnies in this town? _she wondered.

"You want salad with your Golden Eggwich?" the waitress asked.

"Yes, please," Becky replied. "Oh, and salad dressing on the side."

She hoped the sight of Rebecca's raw burger didn't make her nauseous. They might be twins, but they certainly didn't have the same tastes.

"Considering we're identical twins," Rebecca said, "were turned out seriously different."

"Oh, my gosh, I was just thinking that!" Becky said. She cocked her head. "It must be a real trip for you to see what you'd look like in a goth pastels, huh?"

They both laughed so loudly that the people in a nearby booth around to see what was so funny.

_This time_, Becky thought blissfully, _I definitely sat at the right_ table!

* * *

Rebecca's stomach was still futtering, and it wasn't because she'd laughed too hard or wolfed down her burger. It was because she had a twin sister. When she really thought about it, she realized that she'd always known. That was the feeling that had come over her the first time she saw Becky in the hallway this morning. It wasn't just the strange sensation of seeing someone who looks like you; it was the rush of seeing someone you'd waited your whole life to see again. Except for one grave thing: How come Becky didn't know what a bunny was? They were identical twins, right? So shouldn't they be identical?

_If she doesn't know_, thought Rebecca, _I can't tell her._

"Hello, Becky," said a familiar high-pitched voice.

Rebecca looked up. _Oh, yippee_, she thought sarcastically. _Bulla Briefs._

"Hi, Bulla," Becky said.

"I'm sitting over there with Alexis and Rio," Bulla announced.

Becky smiled blandly. "Say hi for me."

Bulla turned her beck to Rebecca and bent down, like she was going to tell Becky a secret. "I think you should know, Becky," she said loud enough for Rebecca to hear, " the Domino dancers are really close group of highly elite girls. And hanging out with _certain people"_- she made quotation marks with her pink nails- "won't really help you become part of the club at all."

Rebecca rolled her eyes and took a sip of her Domino Cola. _What a jerk!_, she thought.

"Actually, Bulla," Becky replied in her own confiding tone, "I'm not sure if _you_ know, but Rebecca here is a huge fan of dancing. In fact, we were just talking about how good she looks in pastels!"

Rebecca snorted, and her drink almost came out of her nose.

"Puh-lease," hooted Bulla. "I don't think Rebecca Hawkins could ever wear anything but dark rags." She turned around to look at Rebecca. "Sorry," she said airily, "but you'll never be anything but a drab Goth loser."

"You shouldn't judge people by appearances," Rebecca said icily.

"Oh, really?" Then how come Duke Devlin, the coolest, hottest, cutest guy at school, has asked me to to sit with with him at lunch tomorrow?" Bulla demanded.

"Because he wants to to throw up?" Rebecca suggested.

Bulla grimaced and turned back to face Becky, who hid her smile just in time. "The reason I came over here, Becky," she said pointedly, "was to invite to join us at lunch us at lunch tomorrow. Alexis and Rio are going to be there. I suggest you be there, too." She shot a grave look at Rebecca.

_"Alone." _And, with that, Bulla stomped back across the diner.

Rebecca was so mad she felt like screaming. "If I wanted, I could be just as big a fashion victim as Bulla Briefs!" she fumed.

Becky waved to the waitress and ordered a huge piece of chocolate cake with two forks. She leaned forward conspiratorially. "Sure. You'd make a great fashion victim, Rebecca," she agreed. A smile crept across her face. "I should know."

"How come you look like a cat who just swallowed a bat?" Rebecca asked suspiciously.

"Because I have an idea..." Her sister looked around to make sure no one was listening. "Since no one knows about us, I think you should pretend to be me at lunch tomorrow," Becky said with a grin.

"What?" Rebecca demanded.

"Think about it, Rebecca. How funny would it be if Bulla went through a whole meal surrounded by all her best friends-including her new BF, me? Except that _me_ will be _you_!"

_It's a killer idea_, Rebecca thought excitedly, _but it'll never work. _There's no way we could pull it off," she said, shaking her head. "I mean, we're twins, but we're not-"

"Identical?" Becky interrupted.

"Okay. We're identical," Rebecca conceded. "But we have very, very different... looks and I don't wear glasses."

"Nothing that contcts and a little spray on tan won't fix," Becky countered.

"You're serious," Rebecca said incredulously.

"Dead serious," Becky replied.

_That's exactly what I would have said_, Rebecca thought.

"My light green stripe skirt would look _so hot_ on you!" Becky said eagerly.

Rebecca tried not to smile, since she was still playing dancer's advocate. "Okay, but what about the perky?" she asked. "It's not like I can smile and eat cafeteria pudding at the same time like you can. My cover would be blown in seconds."

"Don't worry." Becky reached over and put her hand on top of Rebecca's. "I'll coach you. Besides, what better way is there for twins sisters to get to know each other than to _be_ each other?"

Becky's emerald ring sparkled at Rebecca.

_That decides it_, Rebecca thought. She leaned forward and said, "This is going to suck!"

Becky's face fell. "You mean you won't do it?"

"No." Rebecca shook her head. "'Suck' is good! 'Suck' is _really _good!"

"Oh," Becky said. "Weird. So you'll do it?"

"I'll do it." Rebecca grinned.

"In that case, I'd like to propose a toast." Becky held up her glass. "To Rebecca Hawkins, my twin sister."

Rebecca raised her Domino cola. "To Becky Hopkins, my twins sister."

They clinked their glasses. And then, at exactly the same moment, Rebecca and her sister both laughed. "You suck!" they chorused.


	4. Chapter 4

Please review after your done reading.

The next day, Becky made her way to the science hall bathroom- which Rebecca had chosen because it was the least-frequented bathroom in the school-and excitedly arranged on the counter: contacts, eye liner, and tan spray(the spray that makes your skin slightly tan like on the show)...

The door opened a crack, and Rebecca's pale face appeared. She slipped inside and pulled a piece of cardboard out of her black backpack.

Becky's eyes widened as her sister held up the makeshirt sign: OUT OF ORDER.

"You wouldn't!" Becky said.

Rebecca flashed a devilish smile and said _Wanna be?_ Opening the door a tiny bit, she screwed up her face in concentration and reached around to hang the sign on the doorknob, looking like a safecracker in a heist movie.

"Okay!" Rebecca returned, empty-handed. "Make me pink."

"Not pink. Natural," Becky corrected, handing her sister a facial wipe. "Start by taking off your eyeliner."

In a matter of seconds, the towelette was blacker than the rage Becky's dad used to shine his shoes. "Oh, my gosh, I knew you wore a lot eyeliner. But this is really-"

Rebecca gave her a look.

"Impressive," Becky finished and quickly change the subject. "Anyway, I can't believe how white your regular skin tone is," she said, shaking the can of slightly tan spray.

Rebecca grabbed her wrist."You are _not_ putting that on my face."

Becky sighed and looked her sister in the eye. "Rebecca, _natural_ means healthy. It means aglow with life, awash in sunlight. It means you woke up this morning on the morning beach in Japan with a hottie feeding you oatmeal. You need slightly spray on tan."

"Yami Muto doesn't like oatmeal neither do I," Rebecca said frostily. "I know for a fact."

"Well , this washes off anyway," Becky reassured her sister. "And who's Yami Muto?"

Rebecca just rolled her eyes. "Spray away." She sighed, closing her eyes and relaxing her face.

After the slightly spray tan, Becky did Rebecca's blush Becky's blush and lip gloss. It was the eyeshadow that really clinched it, though. Rebecca now actually looked like a living person. Becky grabbed hair bands and pulled it into two pigtails.

"Okay." She smiled, stepping back and admiring her work. "Let's switch clothes." She and Rebecca each took a stall. After taking off her glasses, Becky pulled off her pink shirt and orange skirt, folded them neatly, and slipped them underneath the blue metal divider. In return, Rebecca passed her dark blue shirt and black leather jeans.

A minute later, Becky opened the stall door and stood looking at herself in the mirror. Dark clothes and leather was so not her style. Then again, she did like the way it hugged her thighs. And putting on her glasses again.

Actually, she like to her collection of clothes.

Suddenly, the stall door besides her's opened. Becky watched her sister take in their reflections. Rebecca's eyes shifted her back and forth-Becky wondered for a moment whether Rebecca was having trouble remembering which reflection was her own-before settling on the girl in the pink skirt and the orange wrap top.

"Pretty awesome, huh?" Becky said.

A totally horrified look spread over Rebecca's face. "I never thought I'd look like..." she began hoarsely.

_Uh-oh_, Becky thought.

"Bulla Briefs!" Rebecca's face burst into a smile.

"Shut up!" Becky cried. "I do _not_ look like Bulla Briefs!" She threw a cosmetic sponge at her sister's head in mock anger, but Rebecca batted it away just in time.

"I don't know-this top is seriously pink," Rebecca teased.

"I have _way _better fashion sense than her, and you know it!" Becky protested lightly.

"Okay, okay, don't pop a blood vessel!" Rebecca giggled, holding out her arms for Becky to spray them with slightly tan, too. Then she took the can and sprayed her lower legs and feet herself. "Geez, how do you wear short skirts like this all the time?"

"Well, you look great. Except for the thin combat boots. They sort of ruin it." Becky struck her tongue out at Rebecca.

Rebecca stuck her tongue right back.

They traded shoes.

Rebecca was peering down at Becky's sparkly pink flip-flops.

Becky finished lacing up the thin but heavy combat boots and tried taking a few steps. "Oh, my gosh." She shook her head. "It's like wearing cement blocks!"

Rebecca shrugged. "You never know when something really heavy might drop on your foot."

Becky paced back and forth, trying to get the hang of walking. "Okay," she said as she went. "Show me your best dance team hair flips."

Rebecca turned her head sharply. The two blond pigtails whipped out and smacked her in the face. "Ow!"

"Not that way," Becky instructed. "Do it with grace. Lead with your chin. Like, just pretend like you're watching a mouse running across the floor with the corner of your eye. That's better. Good. Now let's see you smile." Rebecca bared her teeth. "You look like you're about to eat me for dinner." Becky giggled. "Relax!"

Rebecca tried again. And again. "Okay," Becky said, satisfied. "Whatever you do, don't stop smiling. My sunny disposition is one of my best qualities." Rebecca's face lit up. "You bet!" She bounced, giving her a thumbs up.

"Don't overdo it," Becky said. "In fact, you should probably just limit your conversation to 'Really?' 'Really' is the most versatile word in English and Japanese language."

Rebecca widened her eyes. "Really?"

Becky tried not to smile. "Oh, you're going to make me look like a regular Einstein. I can tell."

Rebecca beamed. "Really?"

Becky tried to ignore her. "The other thing you have to remember is that I'm the new girl. So you can't talk about anything I shouldn't know. If you get struck, just ask about about the latest ... _whatever_."

Rebecca took a deep breath. _"Really?"_

"ENOUGH!" Becky cried.

Rebecca slouched back to her normal self. "My turn!" she sang, picking up her black bag and turning it upside down over the counter. A jumbled waterfall of stuff clattered out: cosmetics, pens, notebooks, chewing gum, contacts pencils, and paper clips. Rebecca shook the bag. A full-size stapler crashed to the counter. She shook it again. Out tumbled a small, black aerosol can, which Rebecca snatched up and displayed in the palm of her hand.

"Pale Beauty, the spray on whitener,'" She caressed the can like a model on a TV commercial. "For that extraspecial made of marble look!'"

"You're kidding!" Becky said. She grabbed the can and inspected the label.

"Lots of goths use it," Rebecca explained, "especially if they're not bleesed with a flawless white complexion like mine. Now close your eyes."

Becky did as she told. The spray was cold and moist on her skin, but it dried almost instantly. She glanced in the mirror. "I look like a clown!" she said.

"Careful what you say or I'll take your eye out," said Rebecca, pulling off Becky's glasses off leaning in with an eyeliner pencil as fat as a Sharpie marker.

Becky tried to hold still. She was focused brown spot on the ceiling and asked, "So what should I talk to your friends about?"

"Excuse me?" Rebecca stopped mid upper-left lid. "You cannot talk to my friends. _At all_. Bulla Briefs's one thing. But Akiza Izinski has been my best friend since we were 2 years old. She'd be able to tell you weren't me _instantly._"

Becky knew Rebecca was right, but she was stll disappionted. "I was sort of excited to be all gloomy," she said, pouting, pulling her hair down into the style Rebecca had yesterday(the style she had Waking the Dragons).

"Sorry," Rebecca said with genuine sympathy. "What about hiding out in the library? That's where I normally work on my articles for the paper."

"It won't be as fun as gabbing with Goths, but I guess it'll have to do," Becky conceded. "Luckily, I have apple and some chips to keep me company."

As Rebecca finished putting the contacts on Becky's eyes, she said, "Let's meet back here right after lunch and-"

The bell rang.

"Oh, my gosh!" Becky squealed. "It's time. You have to go!" She scooped up her cosmetics, dumped them back in her pink purse, and handed it to Rebecca. "I'll refill your bag once you've gone," she added.

Rebecca rested her hands on Becky's shoulders and looked her right in the eye. "Don't smile too much and don't speak," she said, and Becky felt her sister pressing her down toward the ground. "And, whatever you do, _please_ don't bounce!"

Becky nodded seriously. She hugged her sister for luck. Then Rebecca plastered her face in a smile and headed out the door, clutching Becky's purse.

Becky did her best not to grin after her. After all, she was a Goth now.

* * *

Rebecca pushed open the doors to the cafeteria, curling her toes so that Becky's flip-flops wouldn't fly off her feet. She tried bouncing as she walked, but then she realized she wasn't smiling. She started smiling, but then she forgot to bounce.

Rebecca caught a glimpse of Bulla Briefs and her minions already at their table, and she ducked nervously into the food line.

As the line crept along, Rebecca decided to try a hair flip. She thought of a mouse running along the floor, just as Becky said, and followed it out of the corner of eye. Her pigtails swung around smoothly. Then the mouse ran under Bulla Briefs's chair. Rebecca imagined Bulla jumping up and down, screaming her head off.

There. That was better. Now it was suddenly easy to smile and bounce.

"A burger, please!" Rebecca requested perkily when it was her turn.

Her full tray in hand, Rebecca set her sights on the Table of Evil. Bulla saw her and waved excitedly, then rested her hand meaningfully on the shoulder of the boy next to her-none other than Duke Devlin. Even from this far away, Rebecca could see Bulla fluttering her eyelashes.

Rebecca made her way across the cafeteria bouncily. She was almost at the Table of Evil when she realized with a jolt that she was walking right past her usual table, where all her friends were eating lunch. She nearly tripped over one of her flip-flops and had to bend down to get it back on.

Akiza was saying, "It's seriously the most important night of the whole year" to Tea.

_What am I doing?_ Rebecca thought nervously.

As Rebecca straightened, Bulla caught her eye again and mouthed, "_Isn't he not?"_ She was leaning toward Duke like she was hanging on his every word.

_I remember_, thought Rebecca, turning her smile back on. _I'm getting back at Bulla Briefs._

She plopped her tray down across from Bulla and Duke and unleashed exuberant, "Hi, guys!" _Oops_, she thought. _I wasn't supposed to overdo it._

Fortunately, Alexis and Rio didn't seem not notice. "Hi, Becky!" they replied.

"I love your contacts you have on!" Alexis said, excitedly.

"Thanks!" Rebecca said.

Then Bulla said, "What do you think you're doing?"

Rebecca's heart stopped. "Uh... I'm, like," she stammered, "having... lunch?"

Bulla blinked in disbelief. "Since when," she asked wide-eyed, "do self-respecting dancers eat hamburgers for lunch?"

Alexis and Rio nodded in concern.

"Yes, well, you are so totally right," Rebecca said, her heart beating again. "And I don't know what came over me, but I just really wanted a burger today."

"I think it's cool," said Duke Devlin, smiling broadly at Rebecca from beneath his crew cut. "Refreshing, actually. A girl who really eats. All the girls I know won't even a French fry unless it's covered in fatless dressing."

"I love hamburgers!" Bulla said quickly. "Just not from the cafeteria." She giggled uncomfortably. "Anyway, let me introduce you. Becky this is Duke. Remember I was telling you about him? Duke owns a Dungeon Dice game shop not far from here."

"Really?" Rebecca said in wide-eyed wonder as she took a bite of her burger.

"Plus he is a great Duel monsters player," Bulla continued, savoring the words like she was eating a chocolate.

"Dungeon Dice, too," Duke added.

"You should see him Dueling."Bulla winked.

"Rea-lly," Rebecca said knowing with a smile. Duke chomped a French fry.

Rebecca wasn't about to stop now. "So , what's the latest in Duel Monsters?"

"I got a Orgoft the Relentless card last year." Duke swallowed. "It was a powerful card. This year, I'm going get a Strike Ninja

"Really?" Rebecca said automatically.

"Yeah." He cocked his head. "Hey, Bulla tells me you're trying out for the dance team."

Rebecca nodded coyly.

"She says you're pretty good," said Duke.

"For a new girl," Bulla put in.

"You sure _look_ like you'd be a great dancer," said Duke, with what he he obvisiously thought was a winning smile.

_I've sunk to a new_ low, Rebecca thought. _Duelist Duke Devlin likes me!_

The look on Bulla Briefs's face made it seriously worth it, though. "Duke!" she said, clutching at his arm like she was drowning. "Oh, my gosh, Duke. We forgot cooking!"

"Oh, yeah," Duke nodded, looking impressed. "I cook, too."

Bulla narrowed her eyes. Then she reached over, grabbed the last bite of Rebecca's burger off her plate, and dramatically popped it in her mouth, smiling at Duke goofily as she chewed.

Rio and Alexis looked seriously shocked.

_This is going better than I ever imagined!_ Rebecca thought, wiggling her toes in delight underneath the table._ Bulla Briefs is literally eating her words!_

* * *

Becky was having a great time trudging back toward the science hall bathroom at the end of lunch period. Now that she was used to Rebecca's boots, every step made her feel really powerful, like she could march through a crowd of people and they would all move out of her way. Her mouth set firmly, she peered out at people from behind a wall of hair. A passing Goth girl murmured, "Hi, Rebecca."

"Hi," Becky answered without stopping. She tried not to let a tiny smile escape, but she couldn't help it._ Being a Goth is so_ _cool! _she thought.

Her period in the library had flown by. At first, Becky had been annoyed that she's forgotten to bring _Thrice Bitten_, the latest Count Vira book, with her. But then she remembered reading an old French short story that, according to what she'd seen on a vampire fiction fansite, was one of the first vampire stories ever written. She decided to see if they had it.

"_The Horla and the Other Stories of Guy de Maupassant._ It looks like this isn't the first time you've checked this book out, Rebecca," the librarian had said when she'd looked at the computer screen.

Becky had shrugged as she'd thought Rebecca might, taken the book, and started reading... The story had been so awesome that before Becky knew it, the bell had rung for the end of the period. Now she was in a hurry to get back to the bathroom and find out from Rebecca how things had gone with Bulla Briefs.

Becky rounded the corner and crashed right into a Goth boy! Her book flew from her hands and skittered across the floor.

She looked at the boy as he bent to pick up her book. He was muscular, wearing blue leather pants and jacket ana a black tight shirt. His slightly tan skin has red/violet and black hair with blond bangs. He looked familiar, probably from one of her classes.

"Are you okay?" he asked, sounding concerned.

"I'm fine," Becky said. "Sorry. I guess my boots got ahead of me."

The boy handed Becky her book, and she finally figured out which subject they had together. "I know you," she said with a nod. "You're in my social studies class."

The boy gave her a weird look. He frowned, looking kinda cute, if you were into the silent type.

"Rebecca," he said slowly, "we've been in the same social studies class for the last four years."

"Uh..." Becky fumbled. "Of course. Just kidding?" She grimaced in a friendly way.

He glanced at the cover of her book. "Looks interesting," he said, holding it out to her.

She knew she should just take the book and go, but it really was something that people should read. "It is. _The Horla's_ about this guy who thinks he's being stalked by a vampire. It, uh, really sucks."

"Yeah?" the boy said, clearly intrigued.

"Yeah. It's all told in diaries entries, and this guy doesn't know if he's going crazy or what," explained Becky.

He nodded. "I'll have to read it."

"You should," she said. Then she spotted Rebecca down the hallway. _Gosh, she really does look fabulous in that skirt! _Becky thought.

The boy was still looking at her. "What else do you like to read?"

Over his shoulder, Becky saw Rebecca stop and stare at her, mouth agape, looking completely panicked. _Oh, no,_ thought Becky._ Lunch with Bulla was a bust!_

Rebecca stamped her flip-flop on the ground and frantically motioned for Becky to follow her into the bathroom_ right now_! Becky mumbled, "Gotta go," to the Goth boy and rushed away. She heard him call, "Hey, Rebecca!" as she pushed through the bathroom door.

"Oh, my gosh, what happened?" Becky cried when she saw her sister's stricken look in the bathroom mirror.

"How the heck am I supposed to know what happened?" Rebecca demanded with wild look in her eyes. "That's what I should be asking you. WHAT HAPPENED? She washed the slightly spray-on tan off her face, arms, and legs, pulled her hair out of it's two pigtails, and abruptly disappeared into a stall to change.

_Wow!_ Becky thought as she washed off the heavy eyeliner and white makeup. _Lunch must have been really awful._

"I'm really sorry, Rebecca," Becky said, taking the next stall and unlacing her boots. "You were right. It was a bad idea. Bulla was never going to fall for it."

"Bulla?" Rebecca's voice rang off the bathroom walls. "Bulla fell for it like a skydiver without a parachute. I'm not talking about Bulla. I'm talking about _Yami Muto!_"

"But I thought you were having lunch with Duke Devlins," Becky said to the silver metal divider.

"I am going to _strangle_ you," Rebecca said, clearly exasperated. Becky's clothes appeared at ankle level.

"You mean the guy in the hallway?" Becky asked, gradually piecing things together as she handed back Rebecca's clothes.

"Yes!" Rebecca said.

"You don't like him?" Becky guessed.

"No!" Rebecca cried. "I am _utterly_ in love with him!"

"Oh." It all made total sense now. Becky felt like such a dork. "I get it," she said sheepishly.

"Well?" Rebecca prompted. "What did he say?"

"I bumped into him by accident," Becky explained. "He asked about my book. It's due back next Tuesday, by the way."

"Did he..." Rebecca's voice was suddenly much quieter. "Did he know my name?" Becky heard her sister emerge from the next stall.

Becky straightened her skirt and pushed open her own door. "You mean you've never even spoken to him?" she asked.

Rebecca sighed dramatically and shut her eyes. "No."

"Well," said Becky brightly. "It appears your unusual mating strategy worked, because I'm pretty sure the guy is totally into you."

Rebecca's eyes flew open. "Nothing. He just... he seemed like really wanted to talk to you. He was, like, hanging on my every word. He didn't want me-you-to walk away."

"Like how?" Rebecca demanded.

"Stop obsessing," Becky said, handing Rebecca her bag and taking her own bag. "If I were you, I'd thank me for breaking the ice."

"I told you not to talk to anyone!" Rebecca protested.

"Come on," Becky said, giving her sister a playful poke in the arm. "Will you please just tell me what happen with Bulla?"

Rebecca leaned back against the bathroom counter to lace up her boots. "Well," she said matter-of-factly. "It's safe to say you're not the only match-maker in this bathroom. In fact, lunch went so well that Duke Devlin asked you to go to the mall with him after school."

Becky's jaw dropped. "No!"

"Oh, yes," said Rebecca as she reapplied her makeup and turned her hair down hair style back to normal. "I said you were busy of course. He's too dumb for you. But you should have seen the look on Bulla's face!" She did a perfect imitation: chest out, mouth open, eyes popping out of her head. Becky laughed.

"Still," said Rebecca, letting her hair fall in front of her face. "I'm glad to be myself again. Talking about sports makes the lunch period seem _eternal_."

"Careful," Becky said as she pulled out the container of facial wipes. "Yami might like games and history.."

"Why?" Rebecca gasped. "What'd he say about history?"

End of chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

Please review after your done reading.

"All right," said Rebecca, looking in the mirrow one last time. "Swear to me that I don't have any more of that stuff on my face." She couldn't imagine anything more devastating than Yami Muto seeing her and noticing that her ear was a little tan.

"I swear," replied Becky. "You look totally pale and ill again."

"Good," Rebecca said gratefully. "Almost ready?"

Becky wrinkled her nose. "I still have to fix my hair. Besides, maybe it's better if we leave separately. Won't people get suspicious if we're seen together too much?"

Rebecca nodded. "You're right. I'll go first."

Becky put down her lip gloss. "You know," she said, "really did look terrific in that skirt."

"What I know," said Rebecca, hugging her sister, "is that _you_ look terrific in that skirt. See you in science."

Rebecca pulled open the heavy door.

"Shimai," Becky called after her.

With a shock, Rebecca saw Yami Muto less than ten lockers away. He was leaning against them and looked like he was waiting for someone.

_He must have been there this whole time!_ Rebecca realized, her heart jumping around in her chest like a bat caught in daylight. _What if he heard what we were saying?_

"Rebecca," he called.

_He's talking to me!_

"Rebecca," he repeated, coming closer.

Rebecca forced herself to put one boot in front of the other. She ran a hand along the wall of lockers to steady herself. "Hi, Yami," she said in a tiny voice.

"Listen," he began. He was the most handsome boy she had ever seen. "Do you..." He stopped and looked at the floor.

She heard her voice say, "Uh-huh?"

He looked right at her. Rebecca put both hands on her bags to keep them from shaking.

"Do you want to meet up at the Ancient Egypt Exhibit? Like, after school?" he finally asked.

Rebecca didn't respond. She thought she must have misheard him.

"Listen, I... never mind," Yami gabbled. He shook his head. "I'll see you around." Suddenly he was walking away.

_Speak!_ the voice in Rebecca's head cried. _Speak!_

"Yami!" Rebecca croaked. He spun around. "Um, what time?" she asked.

His smile shone. "Does five work for you?"

"Sure," she answered, trying to sound relaxed. "I'll tell my grandpa I'll be home before sundown."

"Great," he said. He put his hands in his pockets, and then was gone.

Rebecca collapsed against the lockers. Her hands were still shaking, and her heart pounded. People looked at her as they walked by on their way to class, but she didn't care.

_Well_, she thought breathlessly,_ that's one good thing about having a twin sister who's a social butterfly!_

As if on cue, Becky emerged from the bathroom. "Wow! What happened?"

"He asked me out," Rebecca whispered. She couldn't believe she was saying it.

"What?" Becky asked, drawing closer. "Talk louder."

"He asked me out!" Rebecca said again hoarsely.

Becky's face burst into a smile. "Go, Rebecca!" she shouted really loudly.

"Shut _up_!" Rebecca scolded, even though she couldn't help smiling, too.

"That's awesome!" Becky said. "When's the big date?"

"Today. After school." Rebecca panted. "The Ancient Egypt Exhibit." Becky gave her a squeeze. "I have to scoot or I'm going to be late for Art, but we are going to have _so_ much to talk about in science!" She hurried off with a wink.

Rebecca was going to be late for class, too. She worked up the strength to start walking, and, as she made her way slowly through the prebell crowd, she let herself imagine her coming date with Yami.

They would walk around the exhibit together; she knew he was into everything about it. And when they were done looking in the exhibit they could go to the Domino Coffee place. He'd sit across from her in the shop, drinking My Coffee.

As Rebecca turned into the main hallway, she imagined the two of them walking side by side, talking on and on about...

_What are we going to talk about?_ she thought with a jolt.

Her wave of excitement disappeared like predawn fog. How was she going to talk to Yami Muto for a whole afternoon when five minutes ago she could barely string two words together?

She imagined herself with Yami at the Exhibit again, but she couldn't picture him smiling. They'd sit in silence. He'd to stare out of the window and order another coffee to kill time. He would think she was an utter loser. She'd try to come up with something to say, probably about duel monsters, but he would rarely say anything. He'd just look away.

_I can't go_, Rebecca thought.

The bell for the next class rang.

_I'll tell him I'm sick_, she decided.

Suddenly somebody came up from behind and linked arms with her. She nearly jumped out of her skin.

"And where were _you_ at lunch today?" Akiza demanded, poking her in the side. "Come on! We're late for English."

Rebecca didn't say anything. She let Akiza lead the way.

"What's with you?" her friend said. "You look like you've seen a ghost. What, did Yami Muto ask you for a pen or something?" she teased.

"I don't feel well," Rebecca replied weakly. "I think I'm sick."

Akiza stopped in her tracks. "No way, Rebecca." She shook her head. "You are_ not_ going to bail on me! You promised me ages ago that you would come to today's meeting."

Rebecca realized that she had completely forgotten about the meeting. She couldn't go to the Exhibit with Yami; she'd agreed weeks ago to go a meeting after school with her best friend. Akiza would put a stake through Rebecca if she backed out now.

"I know you, Rebecca," Akiza declared. "You _never_ get sick!"

"That's not true," Rebecca replied halfheartedly. "I got sick in the second grade."

Akiza smirked. "You were choking on food."

"Okay, okay," Rebecca said. She took a deep breath. "I'm going. Five o'clock, right?"

Akiza nodded, and Rebecca felt the blood drain from her heart. _It's better this way,_ she told herself. _I'll put a note in his locker after school, telling him I can't go._

She let her bangs fall infront of her face and followed her friend into their fourth period class.

* * *

"Okay, class!" Mr. Strain shouted, holding a ridiculous orange cap on his head. "Spread out! I want to see a full report on this soccer field's flora! Remember, conifers are extra credit!"

Becky clutched her sweatshirt around her and looked down at the leaf-covered grass. "I'm all in favor of science class outside," she said just loud enough so that Rebecca would hear. "But this is really dumb."

She turned to see her sister's reaction, but... Rebecca was gone. Becky spun around and spotted her sister's black figure trudging off into the distance. "Wait up!" Becky shouted.

She caught up with Rebecca near the edge of the field. "Hey!" she said. "What are-"

Rebecca held up a red leaf. "Do you think this is an oak or an ash?" she asked tentatively.

"An oak," Becky told her, slightly confused. "I didn't know where you went."

Rebecca threw the leaf away and bent down to pick up another and then another. She mumled, "I didn't want anyone to disturb my leaf sampling."

"Okaaay," said Becky doubtfully.

Rebecca kept working silently, picking up leaves, lokking at them, jotting notes down, throwing them back. She looked really sad.

Becky sighed. She touched her sister's shoulder. "You're really nervous about your date with Yami, huh?"

Rebeca moved away.

"It's okay, Rebecca," Becky continued, full of sympathy. "This summer, there was this guy I had the biggest crush on and he-"

"I'm not going," Rebecca said to the grass.

"What?" Becky said.

"I can't." Rebecca shook her head. "I forgot I had this meeting I have to go to. I promised Akiza ages ago."

"The guy you're 'utterly in love with' asked you out, and you're_ not going_?" Becky cried.

Rebecca wouldn't look at her. "That's right," she said. "And it's for the best anyway. If I go, I know I'd just do something seriously grave. And then I'd regret it for the rest of eternity."

"What are you_ talking_ about?" Becky demanded.

"I know I would, Becky," Rebecca barreled on. She was scattering leaves this way and that. "And he'll hate me-worse, he'll think I'm seriously bizarre. And-and I'll have ruined everything."

"Oh, my gosh," Becky said with a shake of her head. "If this were the movies, I'd have to slap your face to make you snap out of it." She was so dumbfounded she couldn't think of anything else to say. Finally she just sat down on the ground, eyes closed, thinking hard. She could hear her sister scribbling and picking up leaves.

It was a windy day, and Becky shivered. She wished she was still wearing Rebecca's leather pants._ That's it!_ she thought, springing to her feet and rushing to her sister's side.

"I really wish you'd stop disturbing my sample," Rebecca said, stomping around.

Becky grabbed her sister by the shoulders. "Rebecca, we have to switch again," she said sternly.

"You're right," Rebecca replied with a frown. "You'd be much better on the date."

"No,_you'll_ go on the date," Rebecca said, grining. "I'll go to the meeting!"

"Oh!" Rebecca said, sounding shocked. Then she shook her head. "I think it's one of those meetings where a dancer might stick out, though."

Rebecca was clearly confused, so Becky had no choice but to speak extra slowly. "There will be two Rebecca's, you dork," she explained. "Imposter Rebecca-that's me-will go the meeting with Akiza. Real Rebecca-that's you-will go to the Exhibit with Yami."

Rebecca silently studied the lef in her hands for a long moment. Finally, she looked up. "I know you're trying to help, Becky." She sighed. "But it won't work. This meeting will be all Goths. And even if you could get by everyone else, you'll never make it past Akiza."

"If you can fool Bulla, I can fool Akiza," said Becky confidently.

"She's my oldest friend," countered Rebecca.

"Don't underestimate me," Becky pleaded. "Just because I'm a dancer that doesn't mean I don't know all about Goths. I'm like the number one vampire novel fan in high school today. I've read every Count Vira book four times. I promise, I'll fit in."

Rebecca laughed uncomfortably.

"All right, class," Mr Strain's voice wafted across the field. "Times's almost up!"

"Say you'll do it," Becky said intently.

"I want to, Becky. But..."

Becky took her hands. "Rebecca, I swear to you as your twin sister that if you don't go on this date, you will never forgive yourself. The boy you like likesyou. He likes_ you_. The only thing that will definitely ruin that is if you blow him off."

"But what will we talk about?" Rebecca asked desperately. "Somehow I don't think asking about the 'latest' is going to work in this situation."

"I'll help you," Becky said firmly. She wasn't going to take no for an answer. "You'll be fine, just like you were at lunch."

Rebecca was silent.

"Girls!" Mr. Stain called.

"Say you'll do it," Becky whispered._ "Please."_ Rebecca blinked. "Okay," she said, a smile creeping onto her face as she squeezed Becky's hand. "But_ I_ get to wear my black velvet boots."

* * *

Becky used Rebecca's cell phone to call her mother as soon as the final bell rang, and told her that she was going to Rebecca's house after school. This was techically true, because twenty minutes later, Becky stood with Rebecca at the base of a japanese honey tree-lined driveway that led up a hill. At the top was a house that looked like something out of _Gone with the Wind_. It had windows that were about fifteen feet tall and a columned front porch that spanned the front of the house.

Rebecca started up the drive.

"This is your house?" said Becky. She thought of the two-story house her family had just moved into on the other side of Domino High. Becky really liked their new house-her bedroom was at least twice the size of her old one-but this place was a total mamsion.

"Yeah," Rebecca said. "Why?"

"It's nice," said Becky, shaking gravel out of one of her flip-flops.

They hustled up the hill and climbed the sweeping front steps. A huge lantern of dark red glass hung above the porch, flickering even though it was day. Rebecca paused before turning the burnished brass knob on the ornately carved oak front door. "Stay here for a sec." She disappeared inside.

From where she stood beside a pile of firewood taller than she was, Becky could see almost all Domino High below her. It looked beautiful with houses poking up among the trees. She spotted the roof of the school in the distance.

Rebecca reappeared. "Come on," she said, pulling Becky inside. "My grandpa's not home."

Becky's eyes slowly adjusted to the dim light. The entryway was huge, with walls covered in interlocking patterns of stone and dark mahogany. She could just make out an extravagant staircase snaking up to the second floor; a window above it was shrouded by thick black velvet curtains.

_Apparently, Rebecca's not the only black sheep in her family_, Becky thought._ This place is Goth heaven!_

Becky followed her sister past a suit of armor and down a twisting flight of stone steps. A series of electric candleabra lit the way. They came to a landing and turned a corner.

Suddenly Becky found herself at the top of a staircase. To her left was a window covered with a heavy black velvet curtain, which Becky realized must be set just above ground level. As she followed Rebecca down the stairs, the wall to her right fell away to offer a clear view of the spacious basement room below.

In the center of the stone floor was a huge, round creamy-colored rug. Tall mahogany shelves crammed with papers and books took up the far wall. In one corner was a huge desk with a computer and toppling stacks of CDs and paper documents; in another was a big black bed strewn with dark purple pillows. Black shes littered the floor everywhere, looking like fallen bats. "This is the coolest room room I have ever seen!" Becky admitted as she reached the bottom.

"Thank you," said Rebecca, sounding pleased.

Becky turned around and noticed some words written in big black calligraphy on the stones that ran down the side of the stairway: "The matter is that I never get any rest, and my nights devour my days."

"That is so weird," she murmured. "That's from the Guy de Maupassant story story I read in the library today. I even told Yami to read it!"

"_The Horla?"_ Rebecca responded. "It sucks, doesn't it?"

"That's exactly what I told him." Becky grinned. Then she noticed the largest wardrobe she had ever seen, made of ornately carved mahogany. It had five doors, one of which hung open. Necklaces and purses glimmered in the dim light. Becky charged over, flinging open the doors. There were racks upon racks of tupetops tanktops, leather pants, jeans, and shirts in every imaginable shades of black, dark purple, gray, with occasional flashes of ocean blue and ruby red. There was one section filled with more black leather shoes and boots.

"I knew we had something in common," Becky said excitedly as she took inventory.

She immediately pulled out a short-sleeved, lightweight, v-necked t-shirt in a rich red wine red. "Can I try this on?" she asked.

* * *

Rebecca stood looking in the mirror, examining the outfit her sister had helped her choose for her first date with Yami. She hadn't worn this tanktop in ages, but she had to admit that Becky was right-she looked drop-dead in it. Becky had also picked out a black vest(like Duke Devlin's but black) and black pants for her that Rebecca had owned.

"What do you think of this?" Becky said behind her, referring to her latest creation. She was wearing black baby tee and blue leather pants. It must have been the sixth outfit she'd tried.

"Now_ that_," said Rebecca, "looks like me."

Becky inspected herself in the mirror. "Let's accessorize," she decided.

She went down to the end of the wardrobe and came back with an armful ofleather things. She carefully handed Rebecca some leather wristbands, a leather choker, little hoop earrings, saying, "I can't believe you wear this stuff," to which Rebecca just shrugged. And for herself, she'd chosen a black velvet choker.

Rebecca sprayed some Pale Beauty on Becky's face, and then they crowded side by side in the mirror to finish their makeup.

Rebecca glanced at her watch and shot her sister a pained look. "You have to meet Akiza at school in fifteen minutes, and I still don't know what I'm supposed to talk to Yami about."

"Okay," Becky said, hurrying to finished applying her eyeliner. "Want to know the secret to an awesome first date?"

Rebecca nodded impatiently.

"Ask questions. Get him to talk about himself: his family, friends, and what _he_ likes."

Rebecca thought,_ That's it?_ and looked at Becky skeptically.

"It's all about getting to know each other," explained Becky. "And, if he's really boyfriend material, he'll ask you some questions, too."

Rebecca got nervous. "What will I do if that happens?"

"Talk. Tell the truth. Tell him about what you like and what drives you crazy. The only thing you might want to leave out is your brand-new, dancing twin sister. That might freak him out."

"No kidding," Rebecca said, rolling her eyes. "That should be the number one rule of romance: no secret twin sister revelations until at least the third date."

Becky giggled and stuffed her clothes into Rebecca's fuzzy black backpack. "And remember," she said, slinging on the back, "even if you're not perky fashion victim, you could try smiling once or twice."

Rebecca heard a door slam upstairs. "My grandpa's home." She winced. "And I don't think now's really the right time to introduce you to him. No offense."

"I'm not going to tell my parents about you either," said Becky, "at least not before we figure a few things out for themselves."

Rebecca nodded. "We'd better sneak out the window," she said. She led Becky up the staircase and threw aside the curtain.

"This is so secret agent." Becky giggled as Rebecca pushed out into the backyard.

A minute later, they'd reached the bottom of the driveway. "So what's this meeting I'm going to?" Becky asked.

"I'm not completely sure," admitted Rebecca. "Akiza is constantly signing me up for clubs and stuff. I think she didn't want to tell me, because she knew I wouldn't like it."

They took the shortcut through the woods behind a neighbor's house.

"Whatever you do," Rebecca instructed as they marched down the leaf-covered path, "don't look happy to be there. No perkiness, no enthusiasm, 'Hi, guys!' You do any of that, and they'll eat you alive."

"Got it. Where's the meeting going to be be?"

"I'm not sure. I know it's not at school though. It will probably just be a bunch of"-Rebecca hesitated- "Goths debating something."

Suddenly Rebecca started to have second thoughts. _What if somebody says something that makes Becky suspicious?_ She stopped at a fork in the path. "Anyway," she said nervously, "don't pay too much attention to anything anyone says. At all."

Becky looked at her in confusion.

"You know, b-because," Rebecca stammered, "Goths can have really strange...uh...senses of humor."

"Okay," Becky said, and shrugged.

"I'm going this way to the Egypt Exhibit." Rebecca gestured down the path. "Keep going straight, and you'll end up back on the field behind school. You're meeting Akiza by the front doors."

They hugged. "You're going to be irresistible!" said Becky.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do," Rebecca answered. "Seriously." Then hurried off down the path to the Museum, determined not to faint at any point during her first date with Yami Muto-even on the displays.

End of chapter 5. And please review because I want reviews.


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